my honest thought is to monitor the situation. We dont need to have the best WR on the other side of moss. I am on the Tate bandwagon right now. This kid has the potential to be a very productive WR. I believe he was a part of Hakeem Nicks success at UNC. He could do the same thing for us, yes he has been hurt since drated but now is a new year and with Edelman, Aiken, and Tate in line we need to focus on DE, OL, OLB, RB, DL. Iam not saying i wouldnt like to have a nice WR opposite to Moss but we need to become more then just a 1 dimensional team.

i say we go after TO for cheap $ and/or see what Denver wants for marshall. we should offer a 2nd and 6th round picks for him. Money is no problem this year due to the lack of a salary cap. That would enable us to get a good RT, a pass rusher, and a power RB with our top 3 picks. Hopefully also pick up peppers and/or jason taylor to be our top pass rushers. This would set us up for another SB. A pass rush would stop teams from having all day to throw making our DB's look much better. Having a good RT to match vollmer on the left tackle would give tom brady more time to throw. not that he would need it with Moss, TO/marshall, Tate, and endleman to throw to. The combo of maroney (fast) and a brusing RB would be killer, especially if the D is forced to concentrate on the WR's. Our D would be our greatest weakness especially at DE but having Wilfork at NT; wright, peppers, green at DE; Mayo/guyton/Mckenzie at MLB; bodden, springs, whilite, and butler at DB; with TBC, crable,drafted rookie, peppers and/or jason taylor at OLB; mcgown,sanders, and merriweather at safety.This team would be amazing (2007 all over again but with a different ending)

this is one time I hope I am dead wrong but I don't see the love that some of you guys are giving to Tate. I didn't read or see 1 thing since he was drafted that shows any potential. He wasn't a first or 2nd round pick because of his lack of maturity.You never hear anyone talk about his work ethic or desire to get on the field and he honestly looked lost in the game he played.If anything, he projects as a special teams player and not a 3rd receiver...I've been wrong before though.

rickand3...my goodness you couldn't be more harsh on Tate. The kid had a TORN ACL!!! He didn't get ANY training camp experience, and played in his first NFL game ONE WEEK after practicing football for the first time in over a YEAR. His very limited game action was basically like his rookie preseason, but without the benefit of training camp practices.

He was a 3rd round pick purely because of the torn ACL. Some draft experts had him pegged as a 1st round pick before the injury. THAT is why people are excited about him. To call him Chad Jackson after the poor guy has had like 3 weeks of NFL practice is ludicrous.

Rickand3 is right, Tate has not put on his NFL cleates yet and many people on here are saying that he is going to be good. Nobody knows that, and it doesn't matter what he did in College, that does not always translate to the pro level....especially at WR.

I don't see the Patriots going out of there way on guys like Boldin and Marshall. The overall need is an upgrade from Sam Aiken because he is not a starting NFL wide receiver. Someone like Antonio Bryant is more likely.

For crying out loud, can we once and for all stop using the name Terrence Nunn on this board. It's laughable. The guys is a career practice squad player who will be lucky to play in a handful of NFL games, let alone be a productive receiver. He had a good preseason going up against a bunch of guys who are working at McDonald's now.

Thinking that a practice squad guy is the cure all for the Patriots offensive woes is ridiculous.

I prefer Boldin myself - he doesn't seem to have issues with teammates or doing his job on the field, nor does he have any off-field baggage. Boldin's only beef is with management to get paid.

Marshall comes with a couple of run-ins with the law as well as a host of other issues for which I do not think this team is prepared. In the past, guys like Rodney Harrison, Tedy Bruschi, and Mike Vrabel made sure that guys stayed in line, but without them there aren't enough strong leaders to police the locker room.

(and the leadership void will only get bigger if they lose Mankins...)

I love how some people think that the upcoming uncapped year is an open ended credit card. Remember with this uncapped year comes an unknown new players contract that could have some serious future financial ramifications for a team. It is all up in the air and most teams are going to approach this with heavy caution. Talent is out there and can be had through the draft and responsible FA signings. We truly need to concentrate on the defensive front seven before anything. I think Toby Gerhart will be there for the taking in the second round and would be a good fit for the Pats. Draft wisely and productively will always counter a flashy expensive free agent.

I'm a big fan of Boldin but we already have some big cash tied up in Moss. I'd just as soon spend the money on defense if we are going to spend it.I think the majority of our problems on offense can be solved with some coaching changes and a wise draft choice at RB. Moss and Edelman should be able to hold the fort until Welker is able to get back to a productive state.

An Old Pats Fan- You're right on the money with the Uncapped year comment..Kraft is a businessman and a p!mp first. Also, Just because there is no cap this year doesn't mean there won't be one next year in which case if you went nuts on contracts you would be under the gun to make cuts and get under.It's also not a foregone conclusion that an agreement won't be reached and a salary cap won't be in place for 2010. I'd say it's about a 50/50 shot right now.

I'm interested to see what Edelman and Tate can do. Boldin is interesting and anyone they add will just be a bonus. The O line is the Key IMO, without improvements on the line Brady can't pass to anybody.

MVP - history shows that what we did to get Moss and Welker are not the norm and that the way other teams build their WR cores is through the draft. You get some no names guys and you turn them into players like the Colts did with Garcon and what's his face this season.

I am confused. I might not be following your thread correctly so forgive me.

How do you think the Patriots got Moss and Welker? They basically drafted them. The Patriots used their respective "draft" selections to trade for those two guys. Not FA's. Not trade proven star for proven star.

The Patriots used a draft selection to give up the potential of a player that might never pan out to be anything to get arguably one of the top 3 WR's in NFL history. When all is said and done they might just possibly have gotten the greatest slot receiver in NFL history as well. Depending how Welker responds to his knee injury and what he does in the coming years.

In short we exchanged a potential "Garcon and what's his face" for a guaranteed first ballot HOF'er in Moss and the reigning widely accepted best slot receiver in the NFL.

The only thing I would like to see if they decide to draft a WR is them stick whatever candidates they are thinking about in a room on each of their visits here with BB, Brady and Moss and make damn sure they can read the same exact thing Brady is seeing cause that is ALWAYS the used excuse about a guy failing here.

How do you not do due diligence and grill the heck out of the WR draftee in a film session with those three. Bring him in for a visit and torment him until you are "certain" he can get the offense and read a defense.

Boldin is absolutely the best fit for your team. Welker is not going to come back the same from that injury, especially considering the type of position he plays. Slot receivers have to make a lot of explosive cuts and lateral movement to get open. Everything they do is in heavy traffic, with LB's, safeties, even D-ends dropping back into coverage. Usually takes most players a full year or even 2 of actually playing to fully recover.

Boldin takes the blunt of that loss (or drop in play if Welker is back). He is a big, physical guy that is dependable on 3rd down, brings big play ability, and can make a clutch catch when you need one. He'd be a great go-to-guy for Brady. IMO, given the right situation, he is a better receiver than Moss, and he's going to give Brady a dependable option at the end of games to go too.

Little known fact that Antonio Bryant is easily as much of a head case as Marshall, TO, or any other FA option. He was dismissed from the 49ers in 2006 after throwing numerous fits in practice and on the field. The final "excuse" for his departure was a DUI charge near the end of that year. He has big play ability and great hands, but also a temperment problem that can't be solved by Belichick or anyone other than a psychiatrist. He is prone to blow up quickly when things don't go his way, and there is a reason that he has had stops in Dallas, SF, and now Tampa.

Would be hillarious to see T.O and Moss in the same offense. Shoulder shrugging, "I can hold the weight of the world on these shoulders" (Note: If holding the weight of the world means collection millions of dollars each year beginning at the age of 21 and fielding a couple tough questions, sign me up) Moss and emotionally regressive "that's my QB" T.O. lining up opposite each other would have any casual fan tuning in every game.

We need 2 WR's next year. One (experienced via FA) and one in the draft, preferrably taken in early rounds.

This of course assumes Tate is ready to go. If not, we will need 3 WR's. I don't think Edelman is a starting NFL WR at this point in his career. He can play slot, but he can't seperate like Wes can. And, I don't think he has the speed to do any damage playing long. That leaves us with Moss as the only true WR on this roster. That is scary given his disappearing act from time to time, and his age.

WR position is like the LB position for us. We never seemed to get it sorted out after our last SB win, and it has been downhill (less 07' when we had 4 legitimate WR's) ever since. Letting Gaff walk was a Gaff.

I have no idea what FA WR or one we might be able to acquire via trade would fit this roster. Someone built like Larry Fitzgerald, who can run and is physical is what I like. Hell, I'll take 2 of them please.

I think the most important thing in a WR is hands. I've seen Aiken get open plenty of times and have the ball bounce off his hands. If a guy can't catch it doesn't matter how fast, tall, strong, or smart he is.

Branch and Brown could do great things while being mostly average in height and speed, but they could catch a ball thrown to them.

today on ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown it was reported that the Cardinals will be looking to trade Anquon Boldin probably for a 3rd and 5th round pick. If that is the case, the Pats should jump all over that!!! Then the Pats will have Boldin and Moss for 2010 and when Moss's contract runs up at end of the year, the Pats can use that money to resign Boldin to a big deal to be our new number 1 to go along with Welker when he comes back healthy for 2011.

If the Pats got Marshall he'd instantly become the number 1 WR. Moss at this point of his career is not better than Marshall. Keep in mind that Orton was throwing passes to him last year and all he does is throw dink and dunk balls while managing the offense. Brady can actually throw the ball downfield unlike Orton so he'd be a beast. Marshall runs all the routes deep or over the middle unlike Moss avoiding the middle of the field.

As for Boldin I would not trade for a guy that gets injured every single season. I admire the guy for playing through injuries but he misses or plays less than 90% healthy almost the entire season. Not worth draft picks and money for a unreliable guy.

I wanna believe Tate is ready to step up this year but we just don't know with him. It usually takes 2 full seasons before you get an idea of what kinda player your getting at WR. Remember Vincent Jackson didn't start breaking out till his 3rd season in SD and look where he is now. I like the Marshall deal if it for a 2nd rounder at most because he'd be Moss's replacement after next season.